Beverage dispensing system maintaining heated and potable conditions



May 10, 1966 P MATTY 3,250,435

BEVERAGE DISPENSING. SYSTEM MAINTAINING HEATED AND POTABLE CONDITIONS Pete Maf/y AT TURA/EVS May 10, 1966 P. MATTY 3,250,435

BEVERAGE DISPENSING SYSTEM MAINTMNING HEATBD AND POTABLE CONDITIONS 3 Sheets-Sheet :a

Filed April 9, 1964 Fig. 2

ATTO/MIE YS May 10, 1966 P. MATTY 3,250,435

BEVERAGE DSPENSING SYSTEM MAINTAINING HEATED AND POTABLE CONDITIONS Filed April 9, 1964 s sheets-sheet s I N VEN TOR BY Per? Marly if.; mw @Mdc fm 'Z ATTOHNE YS United States Patent O 3,256,435 BEVERAGE DISPENSING SYSTEM MAINTAINING HEATEI) ANI) POTABLE CONDITIONS Fete Matty, P). Box 73` Middletown, Va. Filed Apr. 9, 1964, Ser. No, 358,595 6 Claims. (Cl. 222-146) lvly invention relates to improvements in beverage dispensing systems and apparatus incorporated therein. it has especial reference to hot beverages and particularly collec, although not limited thereto.

Briely and generally stated, the invention has among its primary objects (l) to provide a station or stations remote from the collec urn where coilee be dispensed expediously so that waitresses with loaded trays will not have to line up at the urn and await their turn; (2) to provide for the delivery of coffee at a proper predetermined temperature to a remote dispensing station t or stations) while avoiding undue pressure at the related dispensing faucet; and (3) to provide for continuous circulation of coffee or the like from the urn, or supply source, to a dispensing station and back to the urn so that the beverage will not become unpalatable as the result of remaining stagnant in the supply pipe during periods when very little or no beverage is being dispensed.

More specifically, it is an object of the invention to provide a novel thermostatically controlled means for maintaining the beverage at a proper temperature at the site of a remotely located dispensing faucet.

A further obiect is to provide a novel beverage-propelling pump which provides means for steam Vapor escape so as to avoid objectional pressure build up in the piping leading from the pump.

Still another object is to provide novel means for preventing the pump from overheating, said meansinvolving circulation of air through portions of the pump including that which provides the bearing for the impeller shaft.

Invention also resides in certain novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of the various elements which are incorporated in the system; and in modes of operation of same.

Various other objects and advantages of the system and apparatus which is incorporated therein will appear hereinafter, reference being had to the accompanying drawings which illustrate a now preferred example of the invention. However, the illustration is to be taken as illustrative rather than limitative because the invention is adaptable to other mechanical expressions within the spirit and scope of the subject matter claimed hereinafter.

In the drawings, wherein the saine reference characters designate the same parts throughout the several views FIG, l is a broken view, partly diagrammatic and partly in section showing my system for dispensing coffee at a station which is remote from the coffee urn or urns;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary front view showing a Ycollec dispensing station in association with a counter, which latter has a shelf below its top for supporting trays of coffee cups, a remotely located coffee urn being also shown; Y

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view taken on the line 3 3 of FIG. l showing the assemblyof coffee supply and return pipes with an electric heating wire or coil and located within protective tubing;

FIG. 4 is an end View of a coffee pump (with pump head removed) and drive motor assembly which is incorporated in the system;

`FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the motor and pump motor assembly of FIG. 4;

3,250,435 Patented May 10, 1966 ICC FIG. 6 is a partly broken cross-sectional view taken on the line 6 6 of FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the opposite side of the unit from that shown in FiG. 5.

Referring to the drawings by reference characters and turning to FIGS. l, 2 and 3, numeral 3 indicates a service counter and 4 designates second remotely located coffee urn-supporting counter which may, for instance, be in the restaurant kitchen. The counters 3, 4 are supported by the door 5 which latter is sustained by the usual ioists, one of which is indicatied at 6 in FIG. l.

l-lot coffee from tbe coffee container (not shown) of the urn 7 is piped through a pipe 17 from the usual brew outlet to the hereinafter to be described pump 3l) in casing 18, which pump is incorporated in a gap in pipe 17. That portion of supply pipe 17 which receives coffee from the pump 3i) of casing 18 (FIG. l) delivers same to dispensing faucet 8 which is provided at service counter 3, and below the plane of the top of the latter.

Coffee is heated to a predetermined desired temperature during its passage to faucet 8; and there is a coffee return pipe 21 back to urn 7 from the region of faucet 8 -all as will be shortly described.

FIG. l shows that there is a drain pan 9 below the coffee dispensing faucet 8 of the service counter 3 and this drain pan supported by the horizontal bottom 10a of a hanger unit le whose lateral upper end l0?) is bolted as at 11 to the under surface oi" the top of counter 3.

The service counter 3 will preferably have a horizontal shelf 12 below its top; and this shelf. as shown in FIG, 2, will conveniently support a plurality of stacked cup holding baskets 13 for collec cups i4. l`his arrangement enables waitresses with food laden trays to readily pick up a coffee cup and fill it from the faucet 3. A conventional cream dispenser may, of course, be located on top of thc counter 3 adjacent thc site of the collec dispensing faucet 8.

Referring bach to the coffee urn "7, FIG. l shows it as having a dispensing faucet l5 as usual. However, faucet 1S is carried by one head end of a T-fitting 16 which is connected to the urn-provided coiee outlet while the other end of said "ltitting head carries the urn faucet l5. 'he stem of the T-lilling lo has connected thereto the earlier mentioned coffee supply pipe 17 for the service counter faucet 8.

As herein shown, both the supply pipe 17 and the incidentally mentioned return pipe 21 extend below the floor 5 and lengths of both at opposite sides of the pump and motor enclosing casing 13 extend through lengths of protective insulation casing 19.

The heretofore mentioned pump and motor enclosing casing 18 is located below floor 5 and supported by a shelf 24 which is suspended by suitable hangers 25 that are bolted (25o) to one of the flooring joists 6.

In order to assure proper predetermined Coffee temperature at the one or more service counter faucets 8, I provide one or several elongated electric heating coils or hot wires 20 in the protective supply and return pipe-receiving casing sections 19. The heating of wires or coils 2t) is controlled by thc thermostat 26 which is carried by the faucet 8 providing header 22 into which the downturned end 17a of supply pipe 17 discharges.

Faucet 8 is carried by branch pipe 23 of header 22; and the back-to-urn 7 coffee return pipe 21 leads from thc lower end of header 22. Coffee from return pipe 21 discharges into the urn top as indicated at 21a in FIG. 1,

So as to maintain close engagement of the supply pipe 17 and return pipe 21 with the heating wire or coil 20, I provide the insulation material, or other, binding 27. Thus, 17, 2l), 2l are held assembled as a unit within the protective casing 19, as indicated in FIG. 3.

Thus, it will be clear that hot coffee will always be available at the service counter faucet (or faucets) 8; and in this connection it is to be understood that means (to be hereinafter described) will be employed, in addition to header 22, to prevent objectionably high pressure discharge of collec from the service counter faucet 8.

Also, it will be apparent that there is a continuous circuit of hot coffee from the urn 7 to service counter faucet S and back to the urn for so long as the hereinafter described motor driven pump is in operation.

The pump unit employed Turning now to FIGS. 4 and 5, the pump 30 includes a casting which provides the pump casting portion 31 and the adjacent impeller shaft bearing-providing portion or sleeve 32 which latter is open at one end. In FIG. 4 the pump head 36 of FIG. 5 has been removed to expose an impeller fast on driven shaft 34 and within the irnpeller chamber 31a of pump casting portion 31. Bearings 33 for impeller shaft 34 and within casting portion 32 are shown in FIG. 5. The impeller is of the general character shown, for example, in applicants U.S. Letters Patent 3,085,880 issued April 16, 1963.

Machine screws 37 Secure the pump head 36 to the impeller chamber-providing end of pump casting portion 31. Also to be noted is the fact that pump head 36 is provided, adjacent eaeh side, with the upper and lower outwardly inclined heat disseminating fins 36a, 36h, respectively', and further that each side has a horizontal outwardly extending tin 36C. The respective heat disseminating tins 36a, 36h, 36e of pump head register with corresponding longitudinally extending fins a, 45b and 45 of pump casting 31, 32 as indicated in FIG. 5.

Air cooling of pump and its shaft bearings To prevent the pump 30 and the bearings 33 of motor driven impeller shaft 34 from overheating, air blast delivering means is provided in addition to the. registering pump casting and pump head-provided heat disseminating tins 36u, 45u; 36h, 45h; and 36a, 45 of FIG. 5.

In carrying out this phase of the invention, the end of the driven impeller shaft 34 which projects beyond the open outer end of pump portion 32 has fast thereon the hub 38 of the fan 39. This fan 39 is located inwardly of the twin pulley unit 40. Set screws 38a, 40a secure fan and pulley hubs to shaft 34. Impeller shaft 34 is driven by adjacent belts 41 from the pulley unit 42 of the armature shaft 43 of the superjacent electric motor 44, said belts 41 being turned about impeller shaft pulleys 40.

Thus, when impeller shaft 34 is driven, the fan 39 delivers a blast of air toward pump portion 31. Some of this air blast passes outwardly of pump portion 32 and some is delivered directly into the latter through its open outer end. Also one or more tubes which communicate into pump portion 32 have open outer ends opposed to fan 39 for further delivering air into pump portion 32. Air delivered into pump portion 32 ultimately escapes through the plurality of apertures 54 indicated in FIG. 5.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show the base 44a of motor 44 as secured by machine screws 53 to a plate S1. This plate S1, as indicated, is detachably fastened by machine screws 52 to the upper ends of the fins 45u of the pump casting portions 31. 32.

Operation of pump 30 und system The particular form and construction of the pump 30 is very important for a number of reasons. Firstly, fan 39 and pump casting-provided tins enable it to handle ve1y hot liquid without overheating. Secondly, it provides convenient detachable support for motor 44. Thirdly, because it incorporates means for preventing the discharge of steam or vapor into the collec line 17 leading to the header 22 of FIG. 1 and to the faucet or faucets 8 for dispensing the collec at the service counter 3.

In carrying out the above noted third phase of the invention, FIGS. 5 and 7 show that hot coffee from the urnsupplied pipe 17 is delivered to the pump 30 through the elbow 46. This elbow 46 discharges through pump head 36 axially into the impeller chamber 31u (FIG. 4). Also to be noted is the fact that the collec outlet from the impeller chamber 31a is located adjacent the bottom of the latter and discharges through the elbow 47 and the pipe 48 into the chamber 49x of a syphon unit 49 due to rotation of the impeller in a clockwise direction as observed in FIG. 4 where uid entering axially into the impeller chamber 31a (note the head 36 of FIG. 5 has been removed in FIG. 4) will be centrifugally discharged by the impeller out of the line 48 in FIG. 4.

Since collec in pipe 17 is heated (20) en route to pump 30, there will be some steam vapor in the impeller chamber 31u and it is, of course, very desirable to have this steam vapor be not mixed with the coffee that is to be delivered into the faucet 8 or faucets 8 of the service counter 3. Therefore, l provide the impeller chamber 31a with the vapor outlet pipe 5t) which leads alongside the pump and motor unit land discharges into the chamber 49x of the syphon unit 49. Thus, any steam delivered to syphon unit chamber 49x escapes to the atmosphere through the syphon unitcarried relief valve 49a. This means that steamless coffee will be delivered from the syphon chamber outlet 491) to that portion of supply pipe 17 which leads to service counter 8.

The pump 39 and, preferably also, its head 36 have vertical top and bottom heat disseminating tins 56, 57, respectively. Such tins 56 and 57 of the pump and of the head when used will be aligned and are located between the respective pairs of outer top and bottom fins 45a, 36a und 45h, 36h, as will be understood from FIGS. 4, 5 and 6. Also, thickened portions ofthe impellerchamber-providing end of pump 30 have tapped holes 37a (FIG. 4) for receiving the previously mentioned headsecuring screws 37.

The lower edges of the diverging lower flins 45h, 36h of the pump 3U and head 36 are secured by suitable machine screws or the like to the horizontal flanges 61 of angle bars 60 as indicated in FIGS. 5 and 7. FIGS. 4, 5 and 7 show suitable supporting feet 62 secured to the undersurface of flanges 61 of angle bars 66).

Having thus described my invention what I claim therefor is:

1. A system for dispensing a heated beverage with a minimum of gas vapor entrained therein and in a potable condition, comprising in combination, beverage supply means including conduit means providing inlet and outlet portions; power-operated pump means including an inlet portion `connected to said conduit means for receiving the beverage from said supply outlet portion; said pump means including an impeller chamber communicating with the inlet portion of said pump means and including an outlet and an impeller for directing the beverage from said impeller chamber outlet under pressure; vapor pressure relief means connected to said impeller chamber and including means for automatically relieving vapor pressure accumulating in said impeller chamber; remote header means connected in series to said supply inlet portion and said impeller chamber outlctj` dispensingvalve means connected to said remote header means for dispensing the beverage; said remote header .means including a thermo static control thereon for sensing the temperature of said beverage at :said header means; and heating `coil means adjacent said conduit means containing the beverage, said heating coil means being operatively connected to and controlled by said thcrmostatic control means.

2. The system as claimed in claim 1 in which said vapor-pressure relief means comprises a syphon unit connected to `said impeller chamber outlet, conduit means connecting nn upper portion of said impeller chamber to said syphon unit, and relief valve means connected to said syphon unit for permitting vapor to escape from said syphon unit.

3. The system as claimed in `claim 1 in which said power-operated pump means includes a casing including said impeller chamber, an operating shaft journaled axially Within said casing and terminating in said impeller chamber, said impeiier means being mounted on the shaft terminating in said impeller chamber, said pump means inlet portion being disposed axially of said shaft, said impeller chamber outlet being disposed in an outer marginal portion of said impeller chamber, said impeller chamber including an upper vapor outlet portion connected to said vapor chamber relief means.

4. The system as claimed in claim 3 in which said casing includes a plurality of integral, heat-conducting fins extending outwardly of said casing and spaced circumferentially about the axis of rotation of said operating shaft, and fan blade means secured to said shaft exteriorally of said housing for forcing convection current across the outer surface of said fins and obviating the accumulation of vapor in said impeller chamber.

5. The system as claimed in claim 4 in which certain of said fins comprise mounting means for said casing, an electrically energized motor mounted on other of said fins, and drive means connected between said motor and said operating shaft.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,440,808 1/'1923 Wineman 10S-113 2,104,045 1/1938 Knopp 219--301 2,369,440 2/1945 Curtis 222-318 2,680,802 6/ 1954 Bremer et al. 222-146 X 2,726,017 12/1955 Burden 222-318 X LOUIS I. DEMBO, Primary Examiner.

ROBERT B. REEVES, Examiner.

F. R. HANDREN, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A SYSTEM FOR DISPENSING A HEATED BEVERAGE WITH A MINIMUM OF GAS VAPOR ENTRAINED THEREIN AND IN A PORTABLE CONDITION, COMPRISING IN COMBINATION, BEVERAGE SUPPLY MEANS INCLUDING CONDUIT MEANS PROVIDING INLET AND OUTLET PORTIONS; POWER-OPERATED PUMP MEANS INCLUDING AN INLET PORTION CONNECTED TO SAID CONDUIT MEANS FOR RECEIVING THE BEVERAGE FROM SAID SUPPLY OUTLET PORTION; SAID PUMP MEANS INCLUDING AN IMPELLER CHAMBER COMMUNICATING WITH THE INLET PORTION OF SAID PUMP MEANS AND INCLUDING AN OUTLET AND AN IMPELLER FOR DIRECTING THE BEVERAGE FROM SAID IMPELLER CHAMBER OUTLET UNDER PRESSURE; VAPOR PRESSURE RELIEF MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID IMPELLER CHAMBER AND INCLUDING MEANS FOR AUTOMATICALLY RELIEVING VAPOR PRESSURE ACCUMULATING IN SAID IMPELLER CHAMBER; REMOTE HEADER MEANS CONNECTED IN SERIES TO SAID SUPPLY INLET PORTION AND SAID IMPELLER CHAMBER OUTLET; DISPENSING VALVE MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID REMOTE HEADER MEANS FOR DISPENSING THE BEVERAGE; SAID REMOTE HEADER MEANS INCLUDING A THERMOSTATIC CONTROL THEREON FOR SENSING THE TEMPERATURE OF SAID BEVERAGE AT SAID HEADER MEANS; AND HEATING COIL MEANS ADJACENT SAID CONDUIT MEANS CONTAINING THE BEVERAGE, SAID HEATING COIL MEANS BEING OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO AND CONTROLLED BY SAID THERMOSTATIC CONTROL MEANS. 